C.S.P.E

K4t

I was reading a thread in another forum discussing C.S.P.E and whether it should be dropped as a Junior Cert subject. The majority of voters said it should be dropped. The main and most obvious reason for this result was because the exam itself was ridiculously easy, which I agree with, it is.

However, I think the subject itself (in class for the three years) is hugely beneficial and 'important' for the youth of today. It teaches are youngsters about our governemnt, how it is formed, our leaders, democracy, international relations, the environment etc.

When I went into first year, some people in my class did not know who the Taoiseach was or what the EU was. C.S.P.E changes that and teaches students about the country and world they will be growing up in.

Inmho, C.S.P.E should be a LC subject (non exam based), especially at this present time when politics is everywhere you look. (Oil, US Presidential election etc.)

Dropping C.S.P.E would result in Ireland becoming a politically and socially ignorant and uneducated nation. Nobody wants that to happen.

What are your views on C.S.P.E?

spurious

K4t wrote: »

Inmho, C.S.P.E should be a LC subject (non exam based), especially at this present time when politics is everywhere you look. (Oil, US Presidential election etc.)

This is underway, but it will be an exam subject.

pathway33

spurious wrote: »

This is underway, but it will be an exam subject.

when?

PurpleFistMixer

spurious wrote: »

This is underway, but it will be an exam subject.

Deadly. I would have liked to study politics for LC. (Though politics tends to make me insanely angry, but still.)

If you want to discuss the pros and cons of CSPE at JC level, btw, I would suggest taking it to the JC board.

GA361

You are actually the first person who I've come across who actually supports CSPE.
IMHO it is a waste of time.For EVERYBODY in myclass it was just a whole load of stuff we had allready heard.Recycle. . . tolerate foreigners. . . . vote for left-wing parties etc...

nerd3000

I fully support the idea of CSPE at bot senior and junior cycles. Yes, to most of us the trivial matters like how to treat foreigners, a bit about the bunreacht, voting etc is a no brainer but honestly I'm the first one to hold my hand up and say that I want to know the more obscure jobs in politics. For instance, what exactly does the attorney general do? or the chief whip? etc etc. This is not common knowledge to everyone so it's nice to educated with this info.
At the end of the day, when we are all 18 we will be paying these guys wages!! It's nice to know what they are being paid to do (for Irish politics rather NOT doing!HA..)

insinkerator

I dont think that C.S.P.E should be just added to the cirriculum and left at that. When i did it foe JC, it was seen as stupid calss, where people could sit and relax and not have to worry/listen for two classes a week. And from what i gather its still viewed in the same way.

adding it to theLC cirriculum if it si to be treated in the same way as it is in the JC would be ridiculous. Students have enough to worry about as it is ,without two classes a week being wasted. Dot get me wrong, i think it would be fantastic to learn about polotics in school, but i think at the moment the attitude towards it would render it a failure....

spurious

pathway33 wrote: »

when?

Not for a while yet, as it would have to go through all the pilot phase stuff etc., but it's definitely planned as part of the Senior Cycle Review.
NCCA site
See under 'Main areas of activity in 2008'.

Here's another bit about it.

Sometimes I'm not sure students realise just how much development and revision goes on behind the scenes.

KnifeWRENCH

I liked the Politics part of CSPE - hated the rest.
I mean seriously - recycling is good, racism is bad, the sky is blue, blah blah blah.
No-one takes CSPE seriously - it's the only subject where you can do the bare minimum and easily get an A.

I think Politics as a Leaving Cert subject would be an interesting idea.

Rancidmaniac13

I think it would make more sense to start it in the senior cycle. People don't like it in the JC cos the aren't as aware and they don't care about any of the issues. But when students start approaching 18 I think they want to know more about who they might bw voting for. That's certainly what I felt. I thought CSPE was a dos class for JC too but now I'd really like to have a class like that where you can voice your opinions on things and have a proper discussion.

PurpleFistMixer

True that, until I was 18 anything politics-related was sort of uninteresting because I knew I couldn't affect it much. Since then I've educated myself much more, but having a class in school for it would have been cool.

.. That said, if it were a SPHE style discussion class, I could see things potentially getting sticky. Political discussions are never the calmest of things.

K4t

nerd3000 wrote: »

I fully support the idea of CSPE at bot senior and junior cycles. Yes, to most of us the trivial matters like how to treat foreigners, a bit about the bunreacht, voting etc is a no brainer but honestly I'm the first one to hold my hand up and say that I want to know the more obscure jobs in politics. For instance, what exactly does the attorney general do? or the chief whip? etc etc. This is not common knowledge to everyone so it's nice to educated with this info.
At the end of the day, when we are all 18 we will be paying these guys wages!! It's nice to know what they are being paid to do (for Irish politics rather NOT doing!HA..)

Exactly.

Most 6th years in the country will be eligible voting on the Lisbon Treaty in a few months :pac: :rolleyes:

Yet, I'd be willing to bet that less than 5% of the student population (including myself tbh) have a full or any understanding of the treaty.

It's great news to hear that it is bening introduced as a LC subject. I would definitely have chosen it. I might 'teach' it if I get my points hmmm!

cellardoor36

to be fair, a lot of subjects at junior cert level are easy, maybe not to get an A in, but at least to get a decent result in. No subject is easy or a guarantee to get an A1 in the LC, so even if it comes in, I wouldn't put a bet on getting a decent grade - every subject depends on a number of factors, such as the examiner, the paper, what frame of mind you're in, how nerves affect you etc - CSPE would be no different, and in no cases a cert for an easy grade. Just my thought!

Fuascailt

PurpleFistMixer wrote: »

Political discussions are never the calmest of things.

LC history will prove this. It does add a certain dynamic to the class though, and I'm sure makes things more easily remembered. A variety of opinions helps you to understand the issue. I'm sure my LC history class wil never forget the day I took on the inspector over the blueshirts...

I would have adored politics for LC.

KnifeWRENCH

K4t wrote: »

Exactly.

Most 6th years in the country will be eligible voting on the Lisbon Treaty in a few months :pac: :rolleyes:

Yet, I'd be willing to bet that less than 5% of the student population (including myself tbh) have a full or any understanding of the treaty.

The risk of talking about Lisbon in a classroom environment is that your teacher may be strongly pro/anti Lisbon and exert their influence! Brainwash you all into voting what they say.

PurpleFistMixer

The risk of learning anything from one person is that they might brainwash you. Comes with the territory. We learned about abortion from our religion teacher. Not the most objective of people to talk about it.

Also: wtf, we already had Lisbon. Not again, kthxbai.

But yes, definitely, politics etc. is much more relevant to senior cycle students, because they can vote/will be able to vote soon, so they might start thinking about it.

I wouldn't, however, call it CSPE. That's a JC subject nobody takes seriously. If necessary call it Civics, or Politics, or something. If it had the same name people wouldn't take it seriously for LC either.

Konata

spurious wrote: »

This is underway, but it will be an exam subject.

I would love to have done a subject similiar to CSPE for Leaving Cert. I think that if politics is something you're interested in, it would make for a more bearable subject to study than a few others I can think of

Also, making it an exam subject is a far better idea IMO than having it as a compulsory class. In my school we had to do religion 3 times a week during 6th year and the amount of time wasted in those classes was unreal. We had actual religion class about twice during the entire year, which were spent reading a book on "modern issues" that was published in the 70s, and ended up watching DVDs for the rest of the year. They wouldn't even let us use religion as a study class. Let me tell you, everyone resented those classes and I feel that a CSPE class would end up the same. Time is precious in 6th year and most people are way too stressed to participate in a class like that.
Heck, it was seen as a waste at JC, I doubt it would improve at LC :cool:

I definitely welcome the idea of it as an exam subject though!